In a country in which a wireless carrier offers network services, the wireless carrier may operate using spectrum licensed from the country's government. However, as data traffic from mobile devices (e.g., cell phones, tablets, laptops, etc.) has increased, some governments have made unlicensed spectrum available to carriers. Unlicensed spectrum may include spectrum that carriers can use for free, e.g., without having to pay the government (or any other entity).
For example, in the United States of America (U.S.A.), the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has made the Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure (UNII) spectrum in the 5 Gigahertz (GHz) range, e.g., frequency bands in the range between approximately 5.15 GHz to approximately 5.825 GHz, available to wireless carriers. However, more available spectrum may result in network access equipment (e.g., cells, such as micro-cells, pico-cells, femto-cells, etc.) scanning unlicensed spectrum (e.g., UNII frequencies) in addition to scanning licensed spectrum (e.g., cellular frequencies). Scanning additional spectrum to find an operating channel may cause delays in initiating voice or data communications, resulting in customer dissatisfaction.